The next addition to DJI’s lineup of compact folding drones has been revealed in leaked images, videos, and FCC filings. The new DJI Flip, which has propeller guards similar to the DJI Neo, will have a folding design that resembles the HoverAir X1, according to a video shared by reliable leaker Jasper Ellens on X.
DJI’s current folding drones, including the Mini 4 Pro and Mini 3, feature collapsing propellers and arms that fold towards the sides of each drone’s body. The guarded propellers on the DJI Flip appear to instead fold downwards in the leaked animation, resulting in all four of them being neatly stacked to help make the drone smaller and easier to transport when not being flown.
Breaking: Thanks to my friend YueYue this is the worlds first view of the #DJIFLIP. The Flip will be the next gen #foldable DJI drone (video). If you were waiting on a Mini 5. This is it. It will have O4 and probably LiDAR. Prop guards are like FPV carbon fiber. Cheers! Jasper pic.twitter.com/uhumLWXLup
— Jasper Ellens | X27 (@JasperEllens) December 1, 2024
The addition of propeller guards will not only make the DJI Flip safer for novices to fly, but its larger propellers and their ducted design could also make the new drone quieter, according to DroneXL. Other features spotted in the leaked image and animation include a camera on a three-axis gimbal, landing leg supports under the front propellers, support for DJI’s O4 video transmission system, and an “advanced LiDAR array matching the DJI Air 3S’s sensor capabilities,” says DroneXL.
At this point I don’t even understand #DJI anymore. The #DJIFLIP looks like a Frankensteined Mini 2, purely designed to be a 30 minute flight 4K micro drone that may or may not #FLIP or fold in two like the Hover AIR. What do you guys think? Cheers. pic.twitter.com/yHBoVOR1pG
— Jasper Ellens | X27 (@JasperEllens) November 29, 2024
The new leaks follow technical details and the first look at the DJI Flip revealed in FCC filings last week by Jasper Ellens. The Flip will ship with a 3,110mAh battery — larger than the DJI Neo’s 1,435mAh that allows the smaller drone to fly for up to 18 minutes. That’s also larger than the 2,590mAh that ships with the DJI Mini 4 Pro and the DJI Mini 3’s 2,453mAh battery, which gave both of those drones flight times of 34 to 38 minutes.
What’s still unknown are pricing details or when the DJI Flip will launch, although DroneXL suspects it could be announced as early as January 2025. Jasper Ellens also believes the Flip will be DJI’s replacement for the Mini 5 or Mini 5 Pro that was expected to debut sometime in late 2024 or early 2025.
source https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/2/24311063/dji-flip-folding-drone-fcc-leak